The present invention generally relates to the field of electrical wire testing and, more particularly, to methods and system for testing wire insulation using broadband impedance.
Humidity and other environmental conditions (e.g., heat, radiation, etc.) can degrade a wire insulation. Eventually, the degradation can lead to a wire failure, such as a short circuit or signal loss. Different wire insulation types and formulations have different physical properties, and therefore exhibit different responses to environmental conditions.
Conventional approaches for selecting wire insulation, such as full-scale exposure tests and accelerated exposure tests, require subjecting an insulated wire to various environmental conditions for long periods of time. Accelerated exposure tests, which are usually faster than full-scale exposure tests, generally require the wire insulation be exposed for at least one month. Thus, the conventional exposure tests take a long time, which is a disadvantage when analyzing a large number of insulations or environmental conditions.
Further, conventional approaches typically provide pass/fail information on whether an insulation passes or fails a test, yet fail to provide quantitative measurement data. For example, a conventional approach may identify that a wire insulation fails a test because the insulation becomes soft after exposure to hydraulic fluid for a sustained period. However, the conventional approach fails to provide quantitative measured data on how the change in insulation characteristics affects the insulation.